


Here With You I Can Feel Again

by Silveriss



Series: It's Keith - Trails of Memories [4]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Adulthood, Also look at this epic word count, Blossoming relationship, Cooking, Established Relationship, Flirting, Fluff, It's Keith Universe, M/M, One-Shot, Romance, They're both idiots but I love them almost as much as they love each other, Timeline: Anthony is 23, Timeline: James is 22, Timeline: One-Month Anniversary, date, if it doesn't convince you to read this then I don't know what could
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-01
Updated: 2018-07-01
Packaged: 2019-05-31 18:26:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15125309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silveriss/pseuds/Silveriss
Summary: Anthony loves cooking almost more than he loves James - or so he tells himself.James is starting to realize that Anthony might be slowly becoming his favorite person.The both of them are a little hopeless, but they have all the time in the world to make it work.





	Here With You I Can Feel Again

“What’re those?”

“Vegetables - I know, shocking,” he says, looking at James’s twisted mouth and doubtful hum. “I swear I’m not trying to poison you. In fact, this is actually good for you.”

He watches James look at the leek, touch the green ends, and wince. “I don’t trust it. Can’t we just eat ramen instead?” He says, sounding hopeful, and Anthony wants nothing more than to squish his pouty lips. He rolls his eyes and smiles instead.

“You’re hopeless.”

“And you’re too good.”

“I’m not -”

“What are you going to do with’em once they’re chopped? Are you going to put’em in that pan?” He says, reaching for it.

“ _Don’t touch it!!_ ” Anthony yells before James can do something stupid, like touch a heated pan with his bare hand. The hand stopped in mid air but he still slaps it away, just to be sure. “It’s hot, you moron! You’d get burnt!”

“Hey, it’s fine!” He says, palms up. “See? No burns. All clear. Nothing to worry about. Besides-” he leans in then, and one arm drapes over Anthony’s shoulders. A smile spreads out on his face when Anthony doesn’t pull away. It _almost_ looks cute. “- That pan’s hotness’s got nothing to yours, and I can touch you just fine.”

Anthony huffs, but he knows he’s smiling too. “Right, that didn’t sound dirty at all,” he says, rolling his eyes again. “Now give me some space and let me cook, you dork.”

James gasps, and Anthony can tell he’s putting a lot of effort into looking utterly offended, but since he does take a step back - whether it was deliberate, either to do as he’d told or to punctuate the gasp, he doesn’t care -, Anthony ignores him in favor of his cooking. The oil is hot when he tosses the chopped leek in, and it sears and crackles softly as he stirs, happy sounds made just for him.

“James, could you get me a plate, please? They’re in the blue cupboard right over there.”

“Sure. What do you need it for?” He says, setting a pink plate on the countertop.

“To put the leek while the meat gets cooked, that way it doesn’t burn. Thanks.” He smiles at James, who winks. He doesn’t know why, but he didn’t think James would be one of those people who can actually make it work like a spell.

Neck slightly hotter than should be, he puts the leek away and replaces it with the pork, diced  and marinaded in sesame oil, soy sauce, sugar and a clove of garlic.

“ _Damn_ , it smells amazing,” James says, eyes wide and smile hungry.

“I know. Just wait until you have it in your mouth,” Anthony says, realizing too late what he’s said when James starts wiggling his eyebrows at him. They both laugh - like kids - until Anthony remembers he has to add the leek back into the pan with the rest of the meal.

“Who’s sounding dirty now, eh?”

“Get your mind out of the gutter, James.” He tries to roll his eyes, but really it’s hard to pull it off while smiling. And if Anthony has to shove James away because he’s leaning too close to the pan again, well, it’d be a lie if he said he really minded.

* * *

 

One moment later, when dinner is ready and the wine has been poured and sesame seeds have been sprinkled on the rice and the meat - when James finally looks down to his plate and grabs a fork and Anthony takes his chopsticks -, quiet finally enters the room. It doesn’t hold long.

“It’s delicious,” James says, bite barely swallowed.

“Thank you.”

“Really,” he says again, grinning from across the small table, “it’s exquisite. Never eaten such perfect pork.”

Anthony knows James’s being over-enthusiastic - it’s really quite a simple dish - but the praise still makes a big grin bloom across his cheeks. “Better than ramen?”

“Yes, better than ramen,” James laughs. “A thousand times better.”

“I’m flattered.”

“As you should be.”

“Obviously,” Anthony says from behind his glass. It’s  good wine, though not the best for this kind of flavor. Still, it’s way better than if he’d been the one picking which bottle to drink, so he’s not complaining.

“So where d’you learn to cook?” James asks after a few bites, and he sounds genuinely interested. “You looked like you enjoy it a whole lot too.”

Anthony smiles, the way he can't seem to stop doing when James’s around. “College, actually. Freshman year I made some friends who were really into cooking and baking, and when the second year came around, somehow we all ended up in the same flat. The kitchen was really nice - big, luminous, and very well equipped, and since we took turns to cook dinners, I got to learn the basics there. And then I never stopped,” he concludes, and takes a sip of his wine.

“I keep meaning to learn,” James says, “but whenever I try I always end up burning something.”

“Believe me, I burnt my fair trade of meals when I started too,” he says, laughing. “You just have to try again until  you get it right. I could teach you, if you want.”

“You know I can't pass an excuse to spend more time with you,” James teases, grinning. “I’d love that - but I’m warning you, I’m terrible. I once burnt pasta!”

“ _How?_ Pastas literally cook soaked in water.”

“Well, you see, it all started when I decided I was hungry, but not enough to actually keep an eye on the pot while it cooked. So I went back to my game, and I forgot. And the pastas burnt.”

“You didn't set a timer?” Anthony asks, incredulous.

“Nope,” James says, shaking his head. “It was pretty bad. The water had completely evaporated.”

“Oh my god,” Anthony laughs. “How did you not hear the water boil?”

“I had my headphones on!” James says but he is laughing too, and Anthony aches just from looking at him.

How can someone look so effortlessly beautiful, he still hasn’t figured out in the month they’ve been dating. There is something in the way he carries himself, in the easiness of his smiles, that simply radiates charisma. It took Anthony a long time to realize that someone who had so much success was actually willing to pursue someone like him. He still has trouble getting used to the idea.

But they have time, Anthony reminds himself, so much time to figure this out together, the both of them. James is not going anywhere - and right now, in the warmth of his living room, in the intimacy of their conversation, the future doesn’t look so scary anymore.

**Author's Note:**

> I had to compensate all the Angst of this series eventually.


End file.
